Need to keep your eyes on the roador on the runway? A new breed of heads-up display technology lets you see electronic images like maps and instructionsat the same time. The Microvision Nomad, a hands-free headset that beams images to a user's retina, has had some recent success in boosting efficiency in military, avionics, and auto-manufacturing/ repair applications.

With a tiny rotating mirror that sends a light-emitting diode to the user's eye, Nomad allows users to overlay red monochrome computer data and imagery directly on points of task. Auto technicians, for example, can view floating instructions and specifications as they repair vehicles rather than leaving work areas to consult computers or manuals. Pilots can view flight instruments, maps, and GPS readings without looking down. Within months, military personnel will be able to view maps while driving tanks and monitoring troop deployment in the field.

The challenges for wearable augmented-vision systems have included difficulties with ergonomics, comfort, and image quality. But Microvision spokesperson Matt Nichols says Microvision hopes to surmount such obstacles in a consumer version of the Nomad by mounting the 4-ounce system on a baseball cap and utilizing "a very different technological approach to present the image one pixel at a time to the eye."

In field trials of the Nomad Expert Mechanic System at an American Honda training center, the average efficiency gain for technicians using Nomad was 39 percent. American Honda subsequently signed a nonbinding letter of intent to purchase 3,800 next-generation Nomad Systems and distribute them to U.S. Honda and Acura dealers as well as independent repair shops. Microvision expects the next-generation Nomads to ship commercially in early 2004 at $3,000 to $5,000 each.

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